Fares Please!

Many of you may think that I have just been to London for the day & took the photo whilst waiting at a bus stop. Well you'd be wrong. Actually Gail (my darling wife) and I spent the day, not more than 3 miles away from home, at a autokarna in Wollaton Park. It was great fun & saw many vehicles, from Model T Ford's to Rolls Royces. There were lots of buses & trucks, which I remember from my childhood. A few may appear here in the near future, so everyone can see what proper vehicles used to look like, before they all became identical, anonymous metal boxes.

Step This Way

You may think this is an old photo, being in black and white, but the vehicles at the bottom give it away. Although the area hasn't changed that much through the ages. These steps are actually another way into the Park area of the city.
The wall on the left side is part of the castle. Quite interesting seeing the bricked up archway. Possibly a doorway of some kind. Probably not a window, as most castles just had narrow slits, so nothing could get in, but arrows could be fired out.

No Work for a Grease Monkey

Cars have been around for a hundred years, but it seems that garages come and go. By the look of this one, it hasn't seen an engine in years. I'd be very interested to see what lurks behind those faded green doors. What history could be revealed. Old newspapers, calendars, receipts. Maybe an abandoned car still waiting for its owner to come back? For those of you that are interested, it's location is the Derby Road end of The Ropewalk.

The Office That Watson Built

Watson Fothergill, or to give his proper name Fothergill Watson was one of Nottingham's leading Victorian architects. His style was a mixture of Gothic, Tudor and Victorian. You can always tell a W.G building, with his use of turrets, dark timbers and carvings. The photo today is a prime example, namely his former offices on George Street, which were built in 1893. I hope to bring you further examples of his outstanding work in the near future.

Bakealite Pizza?

Passing down Hockley, I noticed the owners of this takeaway decided to keep the origins of the shop in tact, and held on to the glass which produdly announces what the shop sold. For the younger readers, a wireless is what people used to call a radio. Likewse, a gramophone, is a record player. Who knows what iPods will be called in 50 years time?

Shopping on a Wet Afternoon

The black cloud highlights the dome of Nottingham's Council House. It was built in 1926 and replaced an older, but similar building. The council offices are on the first floor, while underneath, a number of shops are situated. On the sides of the building you can still make out the name of Burtons. Not the mens clothing chain, but a high class grocer, similar to Fortum & Mason's, which closed in about 1980. In the dome is a bell called Little John, which has a similar sound to Big Ben in London.

The Road to Somewhere - 2

Maid Marion Way is the subject of today's photo. It is one of the major throughfares around the city centre. It's also another product of the 60's planners. There was an ordinary road there before called Granby Street, but it was widened and became the road we see today. But by widening the road, it basically cut the castle off from the rest of the city centre. A roundabout stood where the blue bus is, but was filled in a couple of years ago, during the road's makeover, after various complaints about the road's unattractiveness.

Cheers from Heaven

The building with the spire is clearly a church. But it isn't. It is actually a wine bar called the Pitcher & Piano. A few years ago it housed a textile museum. The building stands on a road called High Pavement, which leads into the Lace market. It follows on from yesterday's photo which mentioned Low Pavement. I will place a photo which shows the front of the building in the near future.

Shop 'till You Drop

The Broad Marsh Centre is Nottingham's other main shopping centre. It was built in the early 1970's, with a bit of controversy, as a well liked narrow street called Drury Hill was obliterated. It was full of small shops, similar to The Shambles in York. A tiny section still remains on Low Pavement, but an escalator now replaces the hilly lane. Plans are presently being drawn up for the Broad Marsh to be rebuilt & extended, so shops will be opposite the court building, as seen in yesterday's picture, instead of the present bus station.

Crime & Punishment

Today's photo is of Nottingham's Crown Court, on Canal Street. It is often on the TV news when a big case is in session. The accused are led in from an entrance around the corner. Where the Police also congregate. It is not a particularly exciting building to look at. But then I don't suppose you are going to be worried about the architecture if you are facing a long prison sentence.

The Stonemason's Art

I noticed this amazing frieze above a doorway in the Lace Market. But what does it mean? My guess is that it relates to exporting lace, as the whole area was full of companies producing lace up until the recession in the 1980's. In fact I started off my working life for 3 years in one. Packing parcels of lace for companies like Marks & Spencer. These days all the old building have been turned into apartments, trendy bars and small businesses. No lace is produced here now. Another victim of the global marketplace & cheap imports.

View from the Past

Up until the early 1970's, Sneinton Market was the place to go for absolutely everything. It more or less died when the Victoria Centre was built and the market moved inside. A small open air market appears once a week and a few of the shops are still being used. But on the whole it is a bit of a run down area & plans are afoot to develop it. In the meantime, clues still remain as to the various businesses that operated from the area, as today's photo shows; the fruit merchant company of J Pearson.

Messing about on the River

Here's another photo of the boats on the canal. This one features a place where the boats can moor and stop for a while. Perhaps the owners are taking some time out from travelling and seeing what the city has to offer. The mooring isn't far from a Sainsbury's, so they can stock up with supplies, before moving on at about 5mph.

What's Your Angle?

I love Art Deco. I find it a very interesting school of art and enjoy looking at the various forms it takes, from architecture to posters. Imagine my surprise when I looked up at a building I had passed many times & saw the design on the front. Classic Art Deco. The building is at the bottom of Hockley, which is classed as the trendy part of the city centre.

Stand and Deliver

Today's picture is of Nottingham's most famous citizen; Robin Hood. Myth or reality? Nobody really knows. He wore Lincoln Green clothes, so did he originally come from Lincoln? Yorkshire people are claiming that he was born in their county & have named a local airport after him. One thing for sure he is one of the most filmed characters, from Errol Flynn to Jason Connery. The BBC are currently recording a new series in Europe. The statue stands just outside the castle, and as I pass it to and from work everyday, there's always tourists standing by him taking photos.

The Road to Somewhere

Today's photo depicts on of the main throughfare's out of the city centre. This road is called Derby Road and does indeed lead eventually to Derby. The buildings shown all orignate from the Victorian era and were all a bit run down a few years ago. It's a wonder what a new owner and a lick of paint can do to a place.

Rooftop View

Following on from yesterday's picture, today's photo shows some of the Victorian houses that make up the Park Estate. The houses were built by rich Victorian businessmen who had made their money from such things as lace, textiles and trade. Today many of the houses are still owned by business people, including the fashion designer; Paul Smith. It is an interesting area to walk around, seeing all the different styles of houses & how they have been adapted for modern living.

Do Walls Have Ears?

Walking around The Park area of the city, I came across this house on Newcastle Terrace with several of these unique bricks as part of the garden wall. It's hard to believe that this year marks the 25th anniversary of what was termed by everyone as 'a fairytale wedding'. A great shame that it ended so sadly and tragically. I enjoy being married to my Gail, and want to be forever.

Castle Rock

At long last I have taken a photo of Nottingham Castle, like I promised to. I took the photo from the top of the Broad Marsh shopping centre, as you get a good, fairly unrestricted view. Although it is called a castle, it is in fact a large house, as the 3rd version of the castle burnt down in 1831. This version was finished in 1875 & is leased to city council for 500 years. There is a charge to go in, but if you hold a Nottingham city ibrary, you can get in for nothing during the week.

What Floats Your boat?

With the warm weather finally arriving, the activity on the canals have increased. Nottingham city centre has a canal running by it and gets quite busy in the summer months. A number of canalside apartments & bars have sprung up in Nottingham, and as this photo shows two narrowboat owners have stopped off for a quick one. The actor Timothy West is a keen user of the canals and presently narrates a series on ITV called Water World, which is dedicated to life on the canals in the Midlands.